


Excuse Us While We Sing to the Sky

by justadashofformaldehyde



Category: Twenty-One Pilots - Fandom
Genre: Hearing Voices, M/M, blurry's in tyler's head but can actually hurt him, josh has green hair, some violence, there’s a treehouse, this is a mess sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:54:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28805397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justadashofformaldehyde/pseuds/justadashofformaldehyde
Summary: Summers used to be full for Tyler, but this final year of high school was anything but dull; Blurry had shown up months before and always figured out how to make things interesting.Or, in which Tyler fights his demons by himself until he meets the mysterious boy next door, Josh.
Relationships: Josh Dun & Tyler Joseph, Josh Dun/Tyler Joseph
Comments: 11
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> trigger warnings will be at the beginnings of chapters as needed :)

Tyler’s eyes darted from side to side, as if he could prevent the attack if he reacted quickly enough. He couldn’t. Blurry would always win. He was faster, smarter, better and worse in every way.

Tyler tore his hands through his hair and pulled sharply upward, his eyes falling shut and his mouth resting in a grimace as he pulled harder. His bathroom had become too familiar, leaning over the sink crying every other day and bleeding on the floor nearly daily. The mirror seemed to taunt him with the reflection it showed; sweaty, crying, red-eyed, tired, broken. 

He knew the blow was coming, he just didn’t know when. Vomit rose in his throat, tears continued to burn his eyes, his thoughts moved faster and faster. It was coming, he knew it. His breathing had almost slowed by the time he felt Blurry’s attack. 

The nails suddenly struck him, dragging down his back. The sharp, warm pain shocked Tyler. He curled forward, a strangled cry spilling from his lips. “Please, please, please, please, stop,” Tyler whispered. 

He didn’t know why he still bothered to beg for mercy, Blurry never stopped. When the lines had pooled with blood and soaked into his shirt, Tyler felt the second blow, a sharp punch to his nose. 

He looked in the mirror again just to feel pity for the crimson-red, broken boy that looked back at him. His nose began to drip with blood and he uselessly wiped it away, leaving wet, red streaks across his cheeks. 

Minutes later, there he was; laying beaten down on the floor. Choking on his own blood, tears still falling relentlessly. There was no point in moving, so he stayed on the floor, eyes fixed on the ceiling, his throat thick and his eyes tired. 

In some small part of his mind, Tyler planned on getting up, cleaning himself up, and moving on. But why should he? His parents were out, Jay and Zack were at summer camp, and Madison was always at friend’s houses. Nobody would find him.

Some time later, he forced himself to his feet and splashed water across his face. A new shirt and clean face almost hid what Blurry had done to him. He took a shallow breath in his bathroom mirror before retiring to bed, forcing himself to keep his eyes shut as he laid restlessly.

Blurry wasn’t usually quiet at night, but what could have been peaceful silence was anxious and fitful. Tyler groaned at his discomfort, but slowly drifted away into dreams that weren’t an escape from his reality.


	2. Chapter 2

Tyler woke up to his mom sitting on the edge of his bed.

“Hey, Ty,” she smiled. “I just wanted to say bye before I left for work, I’m probably going to have to stay late tonight, but call me if you need anything.”

Tyler gave a tired smile as she stood up. “OK,” he said.

His mom gave a small wave as she left his room, and he let out a sigh as he heard the front door close. Deciding not to go back to sleep, he stood up and made his way to the bathroom. 

He looked up and almost chuckled with how he had gotten used to looking beaten-down and tired. His hair was limp and stringy and his skin was pale; Blurry hadn’t done that. Tyler hadn’t been eating, recently it seemed that waking up long enough to go to the bathroom drained him completely. He splashed water on his face and lifted his t-shirt to dry his face. 

After walking downstairs to the kitchen, his eyes half-closed from a restless sleep, he reached for a box of cereal right before the doorbell rang. He set the box down and turned, furrowing his brow. Nobody usually came to their house, and deliveries were rare. 

He made his way to the door, and opened it slowly, hoping to see a box on the steps. Instead, he opened the door to see another boy about his age. The boy’s hair was bright green, his eyes were brown and almond-shaped, and he wore a t-shirt far too big for him and a pair of beaten up sneakers.

Tyler paused and looked at the boy for a moment. “Uh, hi,” he managed to say.

The boy gave an apologetic smile. “Hi,” he gave an awkward laugh. “Uh, can I use your phone for a minute? Mine’s not working and I need to call someone.”

Tyler stared at the boy for a moment. Should he let a stranger into his house? How much harm could a teenage boy with green hair do?

“I’m Josh, by the way, if you didn’t know already,” the boy supplied.

Tyler shot him a confused look.

“Oh, uh, I live across the street,” Josh gestured behind him.

“Oh!” Tyler said. “Sorry, I didn’t know.”

Josh laughed. “It’s ok. Uh, but can I use your phone? I promise, I’ll be quick and get out of your way.”

“Uh, yeah, sure. Come in.” Tyler pushed the door further open and walked inside, heading to the kitchen to pick his phone up off the counter. He opened it to dial a number and handed it to the green-haired boy before pouring himself the bowl of cereal he had abandoned.

Josh quickly dialed a number, turning away from Tyler and bringing the phone to his ear. Tyler leaned against the counter, trying to avoid listening to Josh’s conversation, but failing miserably. 

“What?!” Josh exclaimed in a hushed tone. “No, I know, I just-” Josh was cut off and he sighed. “Are you coming back?”

Tyler couldn’t see, but Josh’s face fell. “OK,” Josh whispered. He slowly brought the phone down from his ear and handed it back to Tyler, avoiding eye contact. 

Tyler took the phone, and decided to not ask Josh any questions.

“Sorry, uh, just some family stuff,” Josh reassured, smiling unconvincingly. Tyler saw the boy’s eyes were welling with tears.

“Is everything OK?” Tyler asked worriedly.

“Yeah,” Josh said immediately, pausing. “Well, yeah, I guess. I still have one parent,” he laughed.

Tyler furrowed his brow, waiting for an explanation.

Josh sighed. “My mom walked out on us this morning.”

Tyler’s lips fell apart.

“My dad… He’s, he’s not the best guy,” Josh managed. “To live with,” he added.

Tyler pursed his lips, setting down his bowl and pushing away from the counter. “I’m so sorry,” he supplied. “If you need somewhere to stay, uh, maybe I could figure something out for you here?” He suggested.

Josh smiled gratefully. “It’s ok, I promise. Thank you though, I really appreciate it. He’s just… difficult. It’ll be fine.”

“OK,” Tyler said.

“I’ll get going though, thank you!” Josh said, turning around with a wave.

Tyler waved back before Josh closed the door.

“Bye, Josh,” Tyler said softly to the closed door.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tws: description of violence, mentions of abuse

Tyler had just laid his fingertips over the keys of his piano when the doorbell rang. The only person he thought could be was Josh, and he was right.

But when the boy stood on Tyler’s doorstep for the second time, things were different. His hair was matted down, his eyes were red and swollen, and the left side of the green-haired boy’s face was cut and bloody.

“Holy shit,” Tyler muttered when he opened the door.

Josh’s eyes were wide as he stared at the brunette boy.

“Are you ok? Uh, come in,” Tyler urged, opening the door, the boy quickly following him inside.

Tyler closed the door and turned to the mysterious boy. “What happened?”

Josh wiped his hand across his cheek, only succeeding in smearing blood across his face. “My dad happened,” he said softly.

Tyler’s eyes widened. “He did this?”  
Josh gave a small nod. 

“Uh, can I stay here tonight? I promise I can be out tomorrow, I just need a little bit.”

“Of course, of course, you can stay as long as you need,” Tyler assured.

Josh smiled gratefully. “Thank you,” he said softly.

“Uh, do you have any stuff or anything?” Tyler asked as he wet a paper towel and wrung it out in the sink.

“Uh, no, I didn’t leave with much preparation.”

“Oh, it’s OK, I probably have clothes you can wear or something,” Tyler said, stepping towards Josh. “May I?” He asked, holding up the wet towel.

“OK,” Josh answered.

Tyler gently wiped the towel across the boy’s cheek a couple times before throwing it away. “Here, come upstairs and I can disinfect the cuts,” Tyler said, turning around to head up the stairs.

His head began to ache as he walked up the stairs, and soon a familiar voice was back. Do this often? Blurry teased. Tyler gave his head a small shake as if he could get rid of the voice. He was right, Tyler knew how to clean cuts too well for comfort.

When they reached the bathroom, Tyler closed the lid of the toilet and gestured for Josh to sit. Grabbing a bottle of peroxide and a wad of toilet paper, he raised the wet paper to Josh’s cheek. “This will probably sting, OK?” Josh nodded.

Tyler hesitantly brought the liquid to the boy’s cheek and Josh didn’t even flinch. After holding it against the green-haired boy’s cheek for a moment, Josh spoke.

“Have you ever hated someone?” Josh whispered.

Tyler paused. “I don’t know,” he admitted.

“Like really hated,” Josh added. “I didn’t even know I could feel that way about a person until things got worse with my dad.” Josh paused and took a shaky breath.

“Just… rage. Just pure hatred for everything about somebody’s existence,” He said slowly.

“I just want to… tear his skin apart, break his bones, make him bleed, make him scream, make him hurt.” Josh listed, his eyes fixed on the floor, fiery with emotion..

Josh closed his parted lips and shook his head.

Tyler should have been scared of him. But he wasn’t. The other boy watched the green-haired boy intently, watching and listening, noticing every muscle in his face twitch, every wobble in his voice, every shaking breath.

Tyler paused and thought for a minute. “Yeah.”

Josh raised his gaze. “What?”

“Yeah,” Tyler repeated. “I’ve felt that way about someone.”

Josh lifted his head completely to look at Tyler. “Who?”

Tyler hesitated. “It’s complicated,” he said softly.

Josh lowered his gaze resignedly. “Yeah.”

Tyler’s head still ached, and he threw away the wad of paper in his hand, turning away from Josh and heading out of the bathroom.

~*~

“I can find somewhere for you to sleep,” Tyler said, grabbing a blanket from a closet and heading back down the stairs.

Once Tyler had laid a pillow and blanket on their basement couch, Josh sat down and looked up at Tyler.

Tyler gave an awkward smile. “Well, I’ll let you-”

“Do you ever stop hating someone?” Josh interrupted.

Tyler paused. “I don’t know.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally have the next update! If you haven't noticed, I love short chapters so almost all my chapters are <300 words, so hopefully, I'll have an update every couple of days. Anyway, trigger warning for mild violence/blood in this chapter, but it's pretty brief. I hope you enjoy <3

When Tyler’s mom came home, Tyler was waiting in the kitchen, staring at the clock on the wall just to make sure time was passing. She opened the door and dropped her bag, sighing.

“Tyler?” He looked at her and stood up.

“Hey, Mom,” he said, stepping closer to her.

“It’s late, hun.” She smoothed his hair back with a cool hand.

“I know, but, uh, there’s a kid in our basement,” Tyler managed. 

His mom’s eyes widened. “What?”

“You know our neighbors? The ones across the street?” Tyler gestured to their door. “Well the kid, Josh, he, uh, needed a place for the night.”

His mom moved her hands to her hips. “Is there something going on I need to know about?”

“No, uh, I think everything’s fine with him. Don’t worry, you won’t even notice us, I’ll make sure. He’ll be out by tomorrow, don’t worry, he just needed somewhere to sleep for tonight,” Tyler assured.

His mom rubbed her eyes and shook her head. “OK,” she agreed. “But if something’s going on with that kid, or I need to call someone, you need to let me know.”

Tyler nodded, and his mom made her way up the stairs, muttering to herself. Tyler almost followed her up the stairs but decided to open the door to the basement to check on the green-haired boy.

He was expecting a dark, empty staircase, and was most certainly not expecting Josh to be leaning against the door, listening to his conversation with his mom. 

“Fuck!” Tyler breathed, stepping back when he saw Josh looking back at him. “You scared me, man,” he laughed. 

“Sorry,” Josh said sheepishly. “Also sorry for uh, causing problems. If your mom needs me out, I can get out,” Josh added.

“No, no, don’t worry. You’re fine. I’ll figure it out,” Tyler promised.

“OK,” Josh gave a smile.

“Get some sleep,” Tyler urged.

Josh nodded and made his way back down the stairs. Closing the door, Tyler buried his face in his hands as he felt Blurry’s hold become stronger. He rested his elbows against the door and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes.

His stomach began to drop as he felt his left wrist begin the sting. He flung his arms straight down, flexing his wrists and elbows like a toddler having a tantrum. 

Extending his arms out, he watched in disbelief as bloody lines began to form. Angry marks appeared one after the other until both wrists were covered in Blurry’s abuse. He wasn’t crying or even making any noise as his wrists were torn apart by Blurry’s imaginary claws.

His eyes widened as the blood began to drip down to his elbows. This couldn’t be real. Normal teenage boys don’t watch themselves get beat up by thin air or invisible monsters. But if it wasn’t real, where did all these scars come from?

Thinking about sanity was a slippery slope, and he settled on smearing his arms dry with a paper towel. He left red streaks across his arms, as long as he wasn’t dripping blood anymore. 

Tyler made his way upstairs, and Blurry didn’t bother him. He still couldn’t sleep, though, because the only thing on his mind was a boy with messy green hair and brown, almond eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! Sorry my updates are so slow, I appreciate the comments so much; they literally make my day. Anyway, my chapters are short as usual, and no trigger warnings for this one. Hope you enjoy <3

Tyler woke up before his alarm to his mom shaking his shoulder.   
  
“Hey, Tyler,” she said quietly as he rubbed his eyes. “I’m leaving now, but call me if you need anything. When I come home, Josh will be home, right?”

Tyler gave a groggy nod. “Yeah, don’t worry.”

“OK,” she smiled and ruffled his hair, standing up.

Tyler checked the time to make sure it wasn’t too early to get Josh up and changed his clothes before going downstairs. As he opened the door to the basement stairs, he heard a hushed voice from downstairs. Slowly walking down the steps, he found Josh with his back turned, phone to his ear. 

“No! She needs to come back, you can get your own fucking beer!” Josh spat, keeping his voice low. Tyler stood frozen until Josh hung up the phone, and he spoke softly to not startle the other boy.

“Is everything OK?”

Josh turned around, revealing a red, tear-streaked face. “Yeah,” he said on instinct. “My dad just… I don’t know how to go back home right now.”

Tyler furrowed his brow apologetically, unsure how to help. “Is there anyone else you can stay with, any other family or something?”

“No,” Josh answered, despair in his voice. “I’m stuck with my dad, or foster care. I was in the system a while ago, and I would do anything to stay out of it now.”

Tyler slowly nodded. “I’m so sorry,” he supplied.

Josh simply laughed. “It’s OK. It’s just how it is. I just need to figure out where to go tonight,” he said.

“You can stay here another night,” Tyler blurted out.

Josh raised his head. “I heard your mom, Tyler. I know I need to get out soon.”

Tyler paused. “My mom doesn’t have to know,” he said slowly.

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t really know,” Tyler replied.

His lips fell apart and he gave a small gasp. “We have a treehouse.”

Josh gave a chuckle. “Are you serious?”

Tyler grinned and nodded. “You could stay here! I could bring you food and stuff, and we have blankets!”

“Are you sure? I mean, I need a place, and I’m definitely not too good to sleep in a treehouse, but I don’t want to be in your way. Do you have a job or anything?”

“Nah, not very many jobs in this town,” Tyler said with a laugh.

“Yeah,” Josh agreed.

Tyler nodded again. “If you want to, seriously, I can help you stay here.”

Josh hesitated. “OK,” he agreed. “Thank you, seriously.”

“No worries. Your dad sounds like an asshole.”

“Yeah, pretty much,” Josh laughed.

~*~

When Tyler heard the door open, he was in his room and heard his parents talking, realizing they had gotten home at the same time. Waiting a few minutes, he heard them come upstairs and pass his room, closing the door to their room. 

Quietly making his way downstairs, he left the house and stepped outside to a starry sky and a treehouse, sturdily boarded to a large oak tree.

“Josh?”

“Hey!” Josh greeted sticking his head out the door, grinning, a blanket wrapped over his shoulders.

“Hey,” Tyler smiled. He stepped up on the first rung of the ladder and looked up at Josh. “Is there anything you need?”

“I don’t think so,” Josh replied, wrapping his blanket tighter over his shoulders. “Thank you,” he added. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Ty.”

Tyler smiled again at the nickname. “‘Night, Josh.” The boy’s green hair disappeared into the treehouse, and Tyler hopped down from the ladder, enjoying the cool air outside for just a moment before returning to his bed.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally back! This chapter's a tiny bit longer than usual and took me a literal month to write because life's been crazy, but here it is. Trigger warnings for mild violence/gore, but it's not bad. I hope you enjoy <3

Josh woke up early to the sun climbing in through holes in the roof, and layed still on a bed of pillows until he heard a car pull out of the Joseph’s driveway. Sitting up, he saw Tyler’s mom head down the street. 

Once he had climbed down the ladder, he quietly pushed open the sliding door Tyler had left ajar for him. Expecting an empty room, he was surprised to see Tyler sitting at the piano by the house’s front door.

“Oh, hey!” Josh said, smoothing his messy hair back.

“Morning,” Tyler said, pulling his long sleeves further down his wrists. 

“Were you, uh, playing? Don’t mind me, I can leave if you want.”

Tyler laughed. “I’m not gonna banish you to the treehouse, Josh,” he chuckled. “I don’t mind. There’s some bread over there if you want to make toast.”

Josh grinned and nodded, turning around to the kitchen. As he turned away, Tyler began to play, his fingers moving gracefully across the keys, music pouring into the room. Josh froze, listening to the boy play adeptly.

When sound no longer filled the room, Josh broke the silence. “What was that?”

“Just something I’ve been messing around with,” Tyler said quietly. “I don’t really know how to play, I just kind of play what feels good.”

Josh gave a small smile. “It’s really good.”

“Thanks.” Tyler blushed.

~*~  
When Tyler’s mom called to tell him that she had to go out of town for a work trip, he smiled as he agreed.

“I’ll be back on Monday, OK?”

“Yeah, OK, sounds good,” Tyler said before hanging up. “Josh, we have the house until Monday, my mom’s going out of town.”

“What about your dad?” Josh asked.

“He’s coaching a basketball camp this week,” Tyler answered, grinning.

“Sweet,” Josh replied, leaning back into the couch he was sitting on. “What do you want to do?”

Tyler stood up and collapsed next to Josh on the couch. “I don’t know, I don’t have many hobbies,” he laughed, lifting his hand and running his hand through his hair.

Josh didn’t reply and his lips parted, eying Tyler’s arm as his shirt slipped down.

Tyler pulled his sleeve down and his heart began to race, not knowing if Josh had seen the cuts.

“Tyler?” Josh said gently. 

Shit.

Tyler turned to face the other boy. “Josh, it’s not what you think, I swear.”

“Then what is it?” Josh said slowly.

“It’s hard to explain. I-”

“It’s OK, Ty.” Josh interrupted.

“No, it’s not, it’s not what you think, Josh!” Tyler exclaimed, his cheeks burning.

“OK,” Josh agreed resignedly. “Um, if you want to talk about anything, I’m here.”

“Thank you,” Tyler whispered, closing his eyes and pulling his feet close to his chest. Josh stared at the floor in silence. Tyler buried his head into his knees, and sat in anything but silence.

“He knows...” Blurry hissed. “How does it feel?” He asked. “How does it feel,” he repeated, “to be losing your mind? He can’t hear me, you know.” Tyler clenched his hands into fists. “Only you, Tyler. Only you,” Blurry whispered.

“I’ll, uh, leave you alone,” Josh said softly, standing up.

“No!” Tyler blurted out, lifting his head, looking at Josh desperately.

Josh’s eyes widened. “Tyler, are… What’s going on?”  
Tyler sighed softly. “I can’t really explain, I’m sorry,” he said earnestly.

Josh smiled softly. “It’s OK,” he said gently, sitting down beside Tyler and draping an arm over the small boy’s shoulders.

Tyler curled into Josh and closed his eyes, appreciating the warmth of another person’s body for what felt like a long time before he spoke. “Josh?”

“Yeah?” Josh said softly.

“How much do you hate your dad?”

Josh let a puff of air out of his cheeks. “A fuck-ton,” he chuckled.

Tyler gave a small laugh. “Well, there’s someone that I hate a fuck-ton too, but I don’t really know how to explain it.”

Josh frowned. “Tyler, if someone’s hurting you, I’ll fuck them up.”

“No, no, it’s not like that, it’s complicated.” 

Before Josh could respond, Tyler sat up and brought a hand behind his back, lifting the bottom of his shirt up.

Josh’s hand replaced Tyler’s and he lifted the frail boy’s shirt up, seeing long gashes from his shoulder blades down. Tyler couldn’t have done this himself. Someone had held him down and done this to him.

Josh paused. “Ty, what’s happening to you?”

Tyler let his shirt fall down, and leaned back into Josh’s arms.

“I don’t know,” he whispered.


End file.
